The subject matter disclosed herein relates generally to turbine systems, and more specifically to hot gas path components for turbine systems.
Turbine systems are widely utilized in fields such as power generation, aircraft engines, and other types of turbines. For example, a conventional gas turbine system includes a compressor, a combustor, and a turbine. During operation of the gas turbine system, various components in the system are subjected to high temperature flows, which can cause the components to fail. Since higher temperature flows generally result in increased performance, efficiency, and power output of the gas turbine system, the components that are subjected to high temperature flows must be cooled to allow the gas turbine system to operate at increased temperatures, increased efficiency, and/or reduced emissions.
Various strategies are known in the art for cooling various gas turbine system components. For example, a cooling medium may be routed from the compressor and provided to various components. In the compressor and turbine sections of the system, the cooling medium may be utilized to cool various compressor and turbine components.
Nozzles are one example of a hot gas path component that must be cooled. For example, various parts of the nozzle, such as the airfoil, are disposed in a hot gas path and exposed to relatively high temperatures, and thus require cooling.
One solution for cooling a nozzle is to include an impingement sleeve inside the airfoil. Cooling medium is flowed to the interior of the nozzle, and then flowed through the impingement sleeve and onto an interior surface of the airfoil. This approach facilitates impingement cooling of the airfoil. However, while impingement sleeves do provide adequate cooling of nozzles, increased cooling efficiency is desired. Such increased efficiency would allow for a reduction in the cooling medium required to cool the nozzles, and thus a reduction in emission and/or increase in firing temperature.
It would therefore be desirable to provide an improved hot gas path component, such as an improved nozzle, for a turbine system. For example, a hot gas path component with improved cooling features would be advantageous.